EMPTY LEG FLYING
Risk vs Reward
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Empty Leg Flying: Risk vs Reward
By Anthony Tivnan
What is Empty Leg?
An empty leg (also referred to as a
“dead-head”, “repo leg”, “repositioning
leg” or “discounted one way”) is a flight
segment in which the aircraft must fly
without passengers to reach its next
departure airport or return to its home
base. Usually there is another client that
has booked a separate trip, creating the
need for an empty leg. When this occurs
you are at the mercy of the other client’s
schedule; this is where your risk lies.
Why has availability changed
so much?
You may have noticed that empty
leg deals are a bit more difficult to come
across these days. These discounted
flights used to be a dime a dozen, especially
on the popular New York – Florida routes.
From 2000 to 2006 they seemed to be so
common that passengers had come to
expect these discounted prices when flying
on popular routes. In the last few years,
and certainly post-2008, the industry has
experienced a significant shift from whole
and fractional aircraft ownership to ondemand charter and Jet Cards.
Should the other passenger decide to
change their flight time or routing, move
the date of their trip, or show up late, your
scheduled flight might be impacted. If they
Many aircraft management companies and
cancel or re-schedule their flight there is
operators have moved to a “floating” model
a good possibility that, since there’s no
on their fleets to adjust to the increase in
longer an empty leg flight segment to fill,
popularity of Jet
your flight will be
Card flights. This
cancelled as well.
“Passengers often end up paying more for
“floating” model
When this occurs
a recovery aircraft then they would have
essentially assigns
you can only hope
paid had they booked a traditional one-way extra flight crews
to receive notice far
charter to begin with.”
to an airplane and
enough in advance to
allows the jet to
go back to the market
stay on the road longer. They swap out the
and find another option. In cases like these, flight crews via commercial flights rather
passengers often end up paying more for
then always having to position the aircraft
a recovery aircraft then they would have
back to its home base after each flight.
paid had they booked a traditional one-way
This model, when done right, is highly
charter to begin with.
efficient and minimizes the amount of time
the aircraft is flying empty.
Empty Leg Flying | Magellan Jets1
It is beneficial to aircraft owners,
management companies, and the Jet Card
providers they cater to, as the wholesale
rates are more competitive. At the same
time, more revenue is being generated on
the airplane. The other reason you may not be seeing
as many “empty leg” opportunities
today is that, as with any variable-priced
commodity, supply and demand have a
noticeable affect on the market cost of
a product. In August 2013, AIN online
published an article1 stating that Part 135
(charter) was the only operational category
to experience an increase in flight activity,
logging a 17.8% gain year-over-year. With
such large increases in demand it is less
likely that an aircraft will need to fly empty
to its next destination.
also come with tremendous headaches
and last-minute changes to your scheduled
flight.
What are some strategies to
avoid risk?
Anytime you find yourself in the
marketplace shopping with several
companies it’s important to communicate
your needs and expectations for the flight.
If your flight is business-related we strongly
recommend against booking an empty leg.
The 20-40% in potential savings could put
an important meeting, worth much more
than the savings, at high risk.
Our Private Aviation Consultants
Providers are more likely to wait to offer
recommend taking
discounts
advantage of these deals
“Part 135 (charter) was the only
on popular
when you are traveling
operational category to experience an
routes as they
for leisure. You are
increase in flight activity.”
are receiving
less likely to have your
more and
schedule constrained by
more requests
hotel reservations, villas, car services, or
(although on not-so-common routings,
tours than if your trip will involve business
we are definitely seeing them still ready to
meetings or events. A Private Aviation
negotiate right from the initial request).
Consultant will usually bring empty leg
flight segment opportunities to the table
when clients let them know they have a
What are the risks of empty
flexible enough schedule to accommodate
leg flying?
last-minute changes. We will always also
provide you with a solid one-way quote
The risks involved when booking an empty
that isn’t dependent on another flight. This
leg flight segment have varied throughout
ensures you have an option that is 100%
the years of private aviation. While
secure.
scheduling an empty leg flight segment can
be highly cost-effective, and sometimes as
seamless as a traditional charter, it can
Empty Leg Flying | Magellan Jets2
Here are 5 questions we recommend
you ask when receiving what appears to be
an empty leg or discounted flight:
1. Where is the aircraft coming
from and what time will it be at my
departure airport?
2. If there is a schedule change, will
you honor my flight and departure
time?
3. Is the person on the primary flight
being held to 100% cancellation fee
on their flight?
4. What is the backup plan if
something changes with my empty
leg?
5. Do I have a fixed-price guarantee
to back this empty leg up?
While empty leg flight segments can be
a great opportunity to hop on an aircraft
at a steep discount, be sure to do your
homework before confirming.
Most importantly, make sure you are
working with the right organization that
will clearly and honestly communicate the
conditions and details to you before you
book. There are certainly plenty of great
opportunities in the friendly skies, and we
hope this information helps you to take
advantage of them—when it makes sense
to do so.
About the author:
Anthony Tivnan is President and
Co-Founder of Magellan Jets.
Learn more here
Empty Leg Flying | Magellan Jets3
Magellan Jets Corporate Center
Suite 802 North Tower
1250 Hancock Street
Quincy, MA 02169
Phone: 877-550-JETS
Fax:
617-507-6589
[email protected]
www.magellanjets.com
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